Furnace port



`Iune 16, 1936.

J. N. wlLsoN" 2,044,655

FURNACE PORT Filed June 21, 1934 2 sheets-sheet 1 ATTORNEY June 16, 1936. J. N. WILSON FURNACE PORT Filed June 21, 1934 2 Sheets-Sheet 2l ATTO RN EY Patented .lune 16, 1936 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE FURNACE PORT John N. Wilson, Washington, Pa., assignor to Simplex Engineering Company, Washington, vPa., a corporation of Delaware Application June 21, 1934, Serial No. 731,688

14 Claims.

This invention relates generally to furnaces and has particular reference to a port structure by which fuel is supplied to a furnace. The .furnace may be of any desired character and while the invention will find particular utility when used for the supply of gaseous fuel to a furnace, it is to be understood that the invention will also find considerable utility when utilized to supply fuel of any desired character to a furnace.

In furnaces of the general character to which the present invention relates, fuel together with combustion sustaining air is supplied to the furnace by means of a suitable port and one of the primary objects of this invention is to provide a fuel supply port whichwill function efflciently to supply fuel and combustion sustaining air in a most eflicient manner to the furnace.

More particularly the invention has as an object the provision of an auxiliary passage for supplying preheated air for mixture with the fuel prior to the introduction of the fuel into the furnace, the arrangement being such that the fuel supply passage is disposed between two passages which supply heated air to the furnace.

l A further object of the invention is to provide a furnace portwhich will include means for effecting a partial initial combustion of the fuel, this initial combustion being sufiicient to crack the fuel and form free carbon whereby as the fuel and air enter the furnace, the carbon will be incandescent and produce a flame of luminous character.

The invention further provides means for limiting the initial combustion of the fuel so that the fuel will not be consumed to too great an extent prior to its supply to the furnace.

The invention further contemplates the provi- `sion of a port or fuel and air supply construction which will include means for limiting the amount of cold air utilized to thus reduce the amount of fuel required and render the operation of the furnace more economical.

The invention still further provides means for positively preventing the entry of slag into the fuel supply passage with the result that danger of the fuel supply passage becoming clogged is wholly eliminated. i

'I'he invention likewise provides suitable cleanout openings for the fuel supply passage; the provision of means for controlling the temperature of the fuel supplied to the furnace and the provision of means for so supplying the fuel and air to the port that the fuel and air mix in a most efficient manner.

This invention constitutes an improvement on (ci. 26a- 15) the structure disclosed in my prior Patent Number 1,873,093 issued August 23, 1932.

Numerous other objects and advantages of this invention will become more apparent as the following description proceeds particularly when reference is had to the accompanying drawings wherein Fig. 1 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view through one end of a furnace showing a port constructed in accordance with the teachings of this invention associated with the same;

Fig. 2 is a horizontal sectional view taken substantially on the line 2-2 of Fig. l;

Fig. 3 is a vertical sectional view taken substantially on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1; 15

Fig. 4 is a vertical sectional View taken substantially on the line 4-4 of Fig. 1; and

Fig. 5 is a vertical sectional view taken substantially on the line 5 5 of Fig. 1.

Referring then particularly to the drawings wherein like reference characters designate corresponding parts throughout all views, the numeral Il) designates the chamber of a furnacel the end Wall of this furnace being provided with a port II. In-accordance with the usual practice, there is provided a regenerator chamber I2 having refractory checker Work I3, air being preheated in the regenerator chamber for combustion of the fuel within the port and the furnace. A neck I5, having an upwardly extending portion communicating with the regenerator chamber and having a second portion angularly extended with reference to the upwardly extended portion, provides communication between the regenerator chamber and the port II.

As brought out in my prior patent. it previously was the custom to introduce fuel laterally through the walls of the air-introducing ducts of the furnace such, for example, as the side Walls of the hollow neck I5. This practice, however, was not wholly satisfactory for the reason that the fuel introduced in this manner was not distributed uniformly across the air-introducing duct. Further, the fuel was not preheated, it being introduced immediately into the streams of combustion supporting air. While it is not always necessary to'preheat the fuel, it frequently is desirable to do so and the present invention therefore provides among 'other things, means for preheating the fuel and means for effecting a thorough and intimate mixture of the fuel with the combustion supporting air.

To accomplish the above and other results, there is formed in one wall of the neck I5, preferably the forward wall thereof, a passage 55 which comprises an upwardly extending portion 2| and a portion 22 which extends angularly with reference to -the upwardly extending portion. Fuel from a suitable source is injected under pressure into the lower end of passage 2l by injectors I9, these injectors including in accordance with the usual practice, valve plates 23 through which air in regulated quantities may be drawn in from the atmosphere with the fuel.

It'is to be noted that the fuel is injected into the passage 2| preferably transversely of the same and that the passage is provided with bailies 24 arrangedin staggered relation to each other so that a thorough mixture of air and fuel is obtained regardless of the width of the passage 2|. Passages 25 preferably communicate with the bottom of passage 2| which passages extend through the wall of the neck |5 and are closed by suitable doors 28. The passages 25 provide means for cleaning out any deposits that may collect in the bottom of the fuel supply passage 2|. Also formed in the wall 20 and extended upwardly in substantial parallelism with the passage 2|, is a passage 30. At its lower end this passage communicates by means of a port 3| with the regenerator chamber I2, while at its upper end the passage 30 opens into the chamber or passage 22. A suitable damper 33 is provided for controlling the iow of air through the passage 30.

The passage or chamber 22 is disposed between a floor or wall 35 and a tongue designated generally by the reference character 36. This tongue is formed by blocks 31 spaced from each other by cross members 38 to provide passages 39 which open through the sides of the neck I5. Cooling air may be blown through the passages 39 or cooling of the tongue 3B may be effected by natural draft through the passages 39.

It is to be noted that the passage 30 communicates with chamber 22 at a point below the upper end of passage 2| and that the floor 35 slopes downwardly toward the open upper end of passage 30. It is to be noted further that the open upper end of passage 30 is disposed between the furnace I0 and the passage 2|.

The passage 30 accomplishes among others two very desirable results. First the passage 30 provides an outlet for any slag that collects on the bottom block or floor 35, the slag flowing down passage 30 and into the regenerator chamber from which it will ow away and do no damage. The passage 30 thus positively prevents the slag from entering the fuel passage 2| so that the fuel passage is kept clear for the iiow of fuel.

A second desirable result which is accomplished by the passage 30 is that by virtue of this passage an auxiliary supply of preheated air is available for mixture with the fuel and a partial combustion of the fuel is effected before the fuel enters the furnace by way of port Thus during the supply of fuel to the furnace, while the major portion of the preheated air will ascend through the neck l5, some of the preheated air will ascend from regenerator chamber |2 through passage 30. This latter or auxiliary supply of preheated air will mix with the fuel in the chamber or passage 22 and cause a partial combustion of the fuel sufficient to crack the fuel and cause the formation of free carbon, which on entering the furnace will be incandescent and thus cause the flame to be of a luminous character.

By virtue of the limited volume of chamber 22,

accesos combustion in the chamber will be limited automatically. Thus if there is too rapid a combustion in this chamber, a pressure is generated which automatically limits the air entering through passage 30 and thus automatically slows down the combustion in chamber 22; Thus combustion in chamber 22 is limited to the degree where the air is able to enter this chamber through passage 30 to support the combustion.

As brought out before, it is frequently customary to inject cool air with the fuel through the valve plates 23 and it might be noted that by providing passage 30 and by thus admitting hot air to the passage 22 it is possible to limit or re- 'I'he auxiliary hot air effects an initial combustion 2 of the fuel so that a luminous flame will be obtained. The mixture of fuel and air from passage 22 mixes with the air streaming through the neck I5 at the outlet end of passage 22 and this mixture enters the port It might be noted that the invention provides means for supplying heated air over top of, underneath of and in front of the fuel stream so that a thorough mixing of the air and fuel is always effected.

As brought out before, slag is prevented from entering the fuel supply passage by virtue of the location of the auxiliary passage 30, while any deposits which might collect in the fuel supply passage may be readily removed by way of the passages 25. Further, the tongue 36 may be cooled to thus control the temperature of the fuel and auxiliary air supply in the passage 22.

It might be noted that while the chamber |2 has been referred to as a regenerator chamber. it is to be understood that this chamber might be a recuperator chamber. Therefore, wherever the word regenerator appears throughout the specication and claims it is to be understood that this word means a regenerator, recuperator or any other type of pre-heating chamber.

While the invention has been described with some detail, it is to be understood that the description is for the purposes of illustration only and is not definitive of the limits of the inventive idea. The right is reserved to make such changes in the details of construction and arrangement of parts as will fall within the purview of the attached claims.

What I claim as my invention is:

1. In combination, a furnace port, a fuel supply passage having an upwardly extending portion and a portion extending angularly thereto for supplying fuel to said furnace port, and an air supply passage arranged to discharge into the angularly extending portion of the fuel supply passage at a point remote lfrom the discharge end thereof, said air supply passage constituting a slag outlet for preventing flow of slag into the upwardly extending portion of the fuel supply passage.

2. In combination, a furnace port, a hollow neck for conducting preheated air to said furnace port, an auxiliary air supply passage in a wall of said neck for supplying preheated air to said hollow neck adjacent the furnace port, a fuel supply passage disposed in said wall of said neck between the auxiliary air supply passage and the main passage through the neck and means providing a restricted chamber into which said auxiliary air supply passage and said fuel supply passage discharge and from which the mixture 'of fuel and air is discharged into the hollow neck.

3. In combination, a furnace port, a main air supply passage for supplying air to said port, a fuel supply passage for supplying fuel to said main air supply passage, means providing a chamber between said fuel supply pass-age and the main air supply passage through which the fuel passes prior to its discharge into the main air supply passage, and an auxiliary air supply passage communicating with said chamber at a point between the fuel supply passage and the point of communication of the chamber with the main air supply passage to supply air to the same to cause partial combustion of the fuel prior to its discharge into the main air passage.

4. In combination, a -furnace port, Aa hollow neck for conducting preheated air to said port, a passage for fuel in the forward wall of said neck, means for introducing air and fuel into said fuel passage for flow therethrough and into the air streaming through the hollow neck toward the port, and a second passage formed in the forward wall of said neck for conducting preheated air to the fuel passage for mixture with the fuel prior to the discharge of the fuel y into the hollow neck.

5. In. combination, a furnace port, a hollow neck for conducting preheated air to said port, a passage for fuel in the forward wall of said neck, said passage including an upwardly extending portion and a portion extending. angularly thereto, means for introducing air and fuel into the upwardly extending portion of the passage, and a vertically extending auxiliary air supply passage opening at its upper end intov the angularly extending portion of the fuel supply passage for supplying air to the fuel supply passage prior to the discharge of the fuel into the hollow neck, said auxiliary supply passage constituting a slag outlet for preventing flow of slag into the upwardly extending portion of the fuel supply passage.

6. In combination, a furnace port, a regenerator for preheating air, a hollow neck affording communication between said regenerator and said port, a fuel supply passage in one wall of said hollow neck, said fuel supply passage having an upwardly extending portion and an angularly extending portion directed toward the furnace port, means for introducing fuel to the upwardly extending portion of said fuel supply passage, and an auxiliary air supply passage communicating with said regenerator and arranged to discharge into the angularly extending portion of the fuel supply passage whereby the fuel is mixed with the air supplied by said auxiliary air supply passage before it is discharged into the hollow neck.

7. In combination, a. furnace port, a regenerator for preheating air, a hollow neck' providing communication between said regenerator and said port, said hollow neck having an upwardly extending portion and an angularly extending portion directed toward the furnace port, an upwardly extending fuel passage in the forward wall of the upwardly extending portion of the hollow neck, means for supplying fuel to the said fuel passage, means providing a substantially horizontal chamber adjacent the upper end of said fuel passage through which chamber the fuel isdischarged from said fuel passage into said hollow neck, and a vertically extending auxiliary air passage opening at its upper end into said chamber and communicating at its other end with said regenerator for supplying heated air to said chamber, said auxiliary air supply passage constituting a slag outlet for preventing ilow of slag into the said upwardly extending fuel passage.

8. In combination. a furnace port, a. regenerator for preheating air, a hollow neck affording communication between said regenerator and said port, said hollow neck having an upwardly extending portion and a substantially horizontally extending portion directed toward the furnace port, a pair of tonguev blocks extending across said hollow neck in spaced relation to the floor thereof to provide a chamber at the juncture of the upwardly extending portion of the holle-W neck with the portion thereof which is directed toward the furnace port, said tongue blocks being also spaced from each other to provide passages for the flow of cooling air transversely of said hollow neck, an upwardly extending fuel passage formed in the forward wall of said hollow neck and communicating at its upper end with said chamber, means for supplying fuel to the lower end of said fuel passage, and an auxiliary air supply passage formed in the forward wall of said hollow neck having its one end communicating with said chamber and 'its other end communicating with the regenerator whereby preheated air is supplied to said chamber to effect a partial combustion of the fuel in said chamber.

9. In a means for supplying a mixture of fuel and air to a furnace port, means providing a chamber of limited capacity, means for supplying fuel to said chamber, and an air supply passage communicating with said chamber, the capacity of said chamber being such that the pressure generated therein incident to a limited combustion of the fuel and air supplied thereto will control the flow of air to said chamber through said passage.

10. In combination, a furnace port, a main air supply passage for supplying air to said port. a fuel supply passage for supplying fuel vto said main air supply passage, means providing a chamber between said fuel supply passage and the main air supply passage through which the fuel passes prior to its discharge into the main air supply passage, and an auxiliary air supply passage communicating with said chamber to supply air to the same to cause partial combustion of the fuel prior to its discharge into the main air passage, the capacity of said chamber being such that the pressure generated therein incident to the partial combustion of the fuel and air supplied thereto will control the flow of air to the chamber by way of said auxiliary air supply passage.

11. In combination, a furnace port. a hollow neck providing a main air supply passage communicating with said port and with a source of supply of heated air, an auxiliary air supply passage formed in one wall of said neck and. communicating at its ends with said main air supply passage, and a fuel supply passage formed in the wall of the neck between the main air supply passage and the auxiliary passage. said fuel supply passage being so arranged that the fuel flowing through the same is preheated by the heated air flowing through the-main and auxiliary passages.

12. In combination, a furnace port, a hollow neck having an upwardly extending portion and a forwardly extending portion for conducting preheated air to the furnace port, an auxiliary air supply passage formed in the forward wall of said neck and communicating at its ends both with the upwardly and the forwardly extending portions of the hollow neck, and an elongated fuel supply passage formed in the forward wall of said hollow neck between the said auxiliary passage and the main passage through the hollow neck.

13. In combination, a furnace port, a fuel supply passage having an elongated upwardly extending portion and a portion extending angularly thereto and directed toward the furnace port, and an elongated upwardly extending air supply passage located adjacent and substantially parallel to the upwardly extending portion of the fuel supply passage, said air supply passage being arranged to discharge into the angularly extending portion of the fuel supply passage.

14. In combination, a furnace port, a hollow neck for conducting air to said furnace port, a fuel supply passage having an upwardly extending portion and a portion extending angularly thereto and directed toward the furnace port, the angularly extending portion of the fuel supply passage being located in the hollow neck, and an auxiliary air supply passage extending parallel with the upwardly extending portion of the fuel supply passage throughout the length thereof, said auxiliary air supply passage being arranged to discharge into the angularly extending portion of the fuel supply passage so that the air supplied by the same is mixed with the fuel before the fuel is discharged into the hollow neck.

JOI-1N N. WILSON. 

